Every NBA champion has an identity, be it a heliocentric approach revolving around a superstar talent or a stylistically distinguishable brand of basketball. Last season, under Ime Udoka, the Celtics discovered their identity as a ferocious defensive unit that took pride in shutting teams down and earning countless shot clock violations.
It wasn’t always pretty, but the Celtics were a team you could root for, a team that was consistently impressive at one specific thing. Whenever you turned on your TV, tuned in to the radio broadcast, or attended a game live, you knew what you were signing up for.